In 1988, a colleague went to the island of Jamaica and brought back the "Orchid of Jamaica," Broutonia Sanguinea. In those days you were allowed to collect orchids wherever you found them. It was quite a large plant and she gave me a piece. That was the start of my collection.

After I joined the Staten Island Orchid Society in 1989 it really grew. Members would bring in their duplicate plants to be raffled, which is how I acquired many of my plants.

I would put them in a tray on top of a cabinet my late husband had built under a south-facing window. The tray was filled with pebbles so water, which supplied humidity, would not touch the bottom of the flowerpots.

In the beginning, the Society met in the greenhouse of the Clove Lakes Nursing Home, in Castleton Corners, but soon outgrew that location and moved to a room in Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Livingston. Whenever speakers who were growers came to a meeting they were asked to donate at least one plant to the orchid auction, which is held twice a year, in June and December

And so, my collection continued to grow, and as it did, so did its requirements. Since some orchids should not be in direct sun, my husband built me a shelf that used a flourescent light fixture with two 24-inch bulbs. Instead of pebbles I used a kitchen sink rack in the plastic tray which held the orchid pots.

Dr. Olga Federico has been collecting orchids since 1988.

Den Phal Global Villago

Eventually, I purchased a light cart with four shelves, each of which had four fluorescent bulbs 48 inches long, a plastic pan to fit the space, and plastic "egg crates" (which are generally used in overhead lighting). By partially filling the pans with water, humidity was provided without having the pots touching the water. A small fan was hung on each shelf.

THE ORCHIDS

Some orchids, such as the native lady slipper, grow in soil. In December, the so called "Jewel Orchid," which is mostly grown for its lovely foliage, puts up spikes of small white flowers.

When my orchids are out of doors, they must be watered early enough for the droplets of water to evaporate before the sunlight reaches them. The water droplets act as small lenses, concentrating the light and burning holes in the leaves. I use a garden hose for watering outside, except for the phalanopsis and phelopedium, which should not have direct sun. I keep them under a table. Water should not get into the center of these plants; a turkey baster should be used for watering them. Actually, when orchids are indoors, a turkey baster should be used to water all of them.

In the wild, most orchids are epiphitic and need trees to prop them up. Depending on their light requirements, some grow on the tops of trees and some lower down on the trunks with their roots holding on to the tree. There are orchids growing in every continent except Antartica. There even are some orchids that grow wild on Staten Island.

Like lilies, orchids have three sepals (the outer whorl of the flower). In most flowers the sepals are green, but in lilies and orchids they are not. Again, like lilies, orchids have three petals, but in orchids one of the petals is modified. It may curl into a "lip" or it may be modified into a pouch, such as in the lady slipper.

THE DIFFERENCE

It is in the reproductive organs that orchids are different. Instead of having stamen and anthers, the pollen grains are packed in small spheres called pollinia. And instead of having a separate structure of pistil and stigma, orchids have the structures all packed on a "column" that contains a variable number of pollinia and the stigma.

Orchids don't self-pollinate. Bees, butterflies, moths, bats or even humming birds, may pollinate them. The pollinia stick to the pollinator and are carried to the next flower.

While orchid growers in this climate cannot exactly duplicate the conditions of orchids in the tropics, we can try to imitate them. Even in greenhouses, the conditions are not the same as in the tropics. Most orchids in cultivation are not planted in soil. There is fir bark, New Zealand moss, pieces of coconut shells, sponge rock and combinations used for orchid media. Different professional growers use their own favorite mixes. Most of my orchids are in medium-size fir bark.

Ludisia Discolor

There are two major types of orchid plants. Some orchids have pseudobulbs -- thickened stems used as water storage organs. Usually on top of the pseudobulb are leaves and a flower. Other orchids have one main stem and flowers generally sprout between the leaves.

Sin-Yaun Golden Beauty

I brought most of my orchids indoors the first week of October. The cymbidium stay out until November to stimulate flower production. Even a light frost does not harm cymbidium. All orchids enjoy a drop in temperature of 15 to 20 degrees. In nature this would be the difference between night and day. On a light cart, the difference is when the lights are off at night. When my cymbidium are taken in, I will place them on the windowsill of my bow window because they are too tall for the light cart. They will get morning sun. In summer they are in full sun.

LIGHT CONDITIONS

Some orchids, such as catteleyas, laelias and vandas need high light conditions. Others, like phalanopsis (the moth orchid) paphelopedia (orchids with pouches) and the jewel orchid need low light. That does not mean they don't need light. A north window or away from south or west windows would provide appropriate light.

Many of my orchids are called "minicatts." These are hybrids of cattaleyas with other orchids such as SLC- saphronites laelia and cattaleyas; BLC- brassavola laelia and cattaleyas. These hybrids are generally smaller and require less light than their parents and bloom more often.

One of the most misunderstood requirements of orchids is humidity. It has nothing to do with watering. Hobby growers generally have humidifiers as well as water in the trays.More orchids have been killed by overwatering than by anything else. Depending on the size of the pot and the growing medium, they should be watered every third day, twice a week, or once a week. If a phalanopsis gets water at the center of the plant, it will rot.

FERTILIZER

Since orchids grown in bark get no nutrition from the bark, some fertilizer must be provided. There are various formulas of nitrogen, potassium and phosphate such as 20-20-20; 30-10-10; 6-30-30. Whatever fertilizer is used, remember the saying "weakly, weekly."

Orchid plants should be inspected regularly to get rid of pests as early as possible. If you have not sprayed your plants with insecticidal soap before taking them indoors for the winter, pests such as mealy bug may begin to show up in January. A cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol and placed on the white, fluffy insect will take care of it. The invisible babies will need to be removed by spraying the entire plant with a solution containing insecticidal oil and either insecticidal soap or liquid soap.

Cymbidum Golden Elf

Another common pest is scale, which usually is found on the bottom of leaves and looks like small white or brownish bumps. The same remedy used for mealy bug is used on scale. Mites, which are related to spiders and ticks, are also sometimes a problem. A leaf with mites will have stippling and silver-like spots. Don't use any poisonous materials in your home to control mites. It is better to sacrifice the plant and throw it out. Then carefully observe other plants in the area.

For me, growing orchids is not just a hobby, it is a passion. Try it. Come to a meeting of the Staten Island Orchid Society, which meets the second Tuesday of the month.

GARDEN NOTES

The Staten Island Orchid Society semi-annual auction will be held Tuesday, Dec. 18, at 7:30 pm. in the hall of All Saints Episcopal Church, Victory Boulevard and Wooley Avenue, in Willowbrook. The entrance to the parking lot is on Crystal Avenue.

Dr. Olga Federico, PhD, is a member of the Annadale Garden Club, which is a member of First District Federated Garden Clubs of New York State.